However, none of this had anything to do with James Thompson. As a coroner, his only job was to examine the body and determine whether the person had committed suicide or been murdered. So he had the yamen runners set him down, then, leaning on a stick, hobbled over to the corpse.

James Thompson was no stranger to dead bodies. In his previous life, he had spent several years in Africa, where he experienced several bouts of unrest. Even during relatively peaceful times, violent incidents like murder and robbery were common around him. James Thompson himself had more than once had a gun pressed to his head, and had witnessed the bloody scene of someone beside him being shot in the head. On top of that, he often frequented hospitals, so corpses had long since ceased to faze him.

On the way here, James Thompson had already heard the yamen runners' introduction: the deceased was named John Foster, and now appeared to be about forty or fifty years old. There was a deep ligature mark on his neck, and his entire face was dark purple. James Thompson reached out and lifted his eyelid, discovering petechiae inside. He then carefully examined the wound on his neck, and also undid the man's clothes to check for any other injuries.

"Uncle Harris, could you lift me up a bit higher so I can see the branch he was hanged from?" After finishing his examination of the body, James Thompson suddenly turned to Edward Harris and spoke. He had already discovered some things from the corpse, but still needed further verification.

Edward Harris didn't know what James Thompson wanted to do, but agreed anyway. He picked James Thompson up and carried him to the branch where the hanging had occurred, then lifted him overhead so that James Thompson could see the situation on the branch. James Thompson reached out to examine the rope and the branch, then had Edward Harris set him down.

"He did indeed die of asphyxiation!" James Thompson said confidently to Sheriff Cooper and Edward Harris. The signs of death by asphyxiation were very obvious—for example, petechiae in the eyelids, which was the most obvious sign of asphyxiation. Not to mention, the ligature mark on the man's neck was extremely conspicuous.

"So, you're saying he really did die by suicide?" Sheriff Cooper saw that, despite his young age, James Thompson was not at all afraid of the corpse, and showed no hesitation during the examination, as if he was completely confident. This made Sheriff Cooper trust James Thompson a bit more.

"There are many types of asphyxial deaths. Hanging suicide is just one of them; it could also be strangulation or throttling. But I can now conclude that this John Foster was strangled from behind with a rope!" James Thompson, leaning on his stick, returned to John Foster's corpse and spoke again. The murderer who killed John Foster was clearly no professional—there were far too many flaws left behind. Even for a seasoned detective fan like him, or even someone who had just watched a few episodes of Conan, it would be obvious.

"Dalang, are you so sure?" Edward Harris was surprised by James Thompson's answer. In the past, coroner examinations not only took a long time, but the results were also vague at best, usually just listing a few possible causes to make the case easier to solve. Rarely did anyone give such a definite cause of death as James Thompson just had.

"Uncle Harris, look here. Normally, in a hanging, the ligature mark runs from under the jaw to behind the ear. But if someone is strangled, the mark crosses at the back of the neck. This victim has two ligature marks on his neck: one crosses at the back and is purplish-red, while the other is the hanging mark, which is very faint. The reason for this is that after death, blood stops circulating, so the postmortem wound is less visible!" James Thompson pointed to the victim's neck. There are also clear differences between wounds inflicted before and after death, and James Thompson could spot them at a glance.

"Just as I thought!" Edward Harris leaned in for a closer look and indeed found that the marks on the victim's neck were different from those of an ordinary hanging.

"Can you really determine it was murder just based on two wounds?" At that moment, the young man behind Sheriff Cooper suddenly spoke up. It was his first time speaking, and his gaze toward James Thompson was now tinged with curiosity, no longer as aloof as before.

Chapter 10 Benjamin Cooper

The young man behind Sheriff Cooper questioned James Thompson's autopsy conclusion, which made Edward Harris beside him glare at the boy in displeasure. Although he knew the youth was brought by Sheriff Cooper, he was still just a child, and it wasn't his place to interrupt. So Edward Harris asked, rather unhappily, "Who are you?"

"Ahem~ This is my younger brother. Don't be fooled by his age—his learning far surpasses mine. Sooner or later, he'll enter officialdom, so I brought him along to gain some experience!" Sheriff Cooper coughed and introduced him.

Although his explanation sounded reasonable, this was still official business at the yamen, and bringing his brother to participate in a case was somewhat inappropriate. Of course, Sheriff Cooper was the highest authority here, and even if the magistrate found out later, he wouldn't be blamed for such a minor matter.

It's worth mentioning that Sheriff Cooper wasn't lying when he introduced his brother. Though he himself had passed the imperial exam at a young age, he considered himself far inferior to his younger brother in terms of talent. Back in their hometown, his brother was already known as a child prodigy, and many said he was prime minister material. That's why Sheriff Cooper devoted himself to nurturing his brother, even bringing him along when he took up his official post.